Abortion alliance formed + R’s say delay gas tax + Big Tech fights CA law + Lee is in
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
NEWSOM PARTNERS WITH OTHER STATES ON ABORTION NETWORK
Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has promoted California as a national sanctuary for women seeking abortions, announced Tuesday that he was joining 19 other governors in launching a multi-state Reproductive Freedom Alliance.
This alliance, funded by the California Wellness Foundation and the Rosenberg Foundation, both based in California, will work “to strengthen reproductive freedom in the face of an unprecedented assault on abortion access and other forms of reproductive health care,” according to a statement from Newsom’s office.
Newsom said in a statement that the network will serve as “a firewall” against states that are hostile to abortion rights.
The coalition bills itself as nonpartisan, but is comprised of all Democratic governors.
As for what it will actually do, the alliance will share model statutory language and executive orders, strategies to protect abortion providers from prosecution and ways to make birth control and abortion medications more accessible, according to the Associated Press, which broke the story.
Last year, California passed a slate of laws, as well as a constitutional amendment, aimed at protecting abortion rights and making the Golden State into a destination for people from other states seeking access.
REPUBLICANS URGE NEWSOM TO DELAY GAS TAX INCREASE
Legislative Republicans sent a letter to Newsom Tuesday, calling on the governor to prevent the price of gas from going up this summer.
The lawmakers requested that Newsom block a planned 8% gas tax increase set to go into effect July 1. Republicans also asked Newsom to extend the diesel tax holiday and delay the mandatory transition from the “winter blend” to the more expensive to produce “summer blend” of gasoline.
“Californians are struggling to afford the rapidly increasing cost of basic necessities, such as housing, food, energy, and transportation. Rising fuel prices drive up the cost of everything from gas at the pump to goods at the store,” the letter reads in part.
The letter came a day before the first major legislative hearing for Newsom’s proposal to tax oil and gas company windfall profits.
Assembly Republican Leader James Gallagher, R-Yuba City, said in a statement accompanying the letter that these three steps would reduce the burden on “cash-strapped Californians.”
Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, R-San Diego, called the move “a no-brainer.”
In a statement, Newsom deputy press secretary Daniel Villaseñor said that while the governor “welcomes ideas from all corners” on how to address high gas prices, “Republicans are avoiding the core problem.”
Namely, Villaseñor said, they are avoiding an industry that operates “with zero accountability and too much power” over a vital commodity.
“Gov. Newsom is working hard to pass a price gouging penalty with transparency measures to hold Big Oil accountable and Republicans are welcome to join our efforts at any point,” he said.
TECH GROUP SEEKS PAUSE ON CALIFORNIA ONLINE CHILDREN’S PRIVACY LAW
Last Friday, NetChoice, a trade group representing the tech industry (including Meta, Google and Twitter) petitioned a federal judge to temporarily block AB 2273 — the California Age-Appropriate Design Code Act — while the lawsuit against it is pending.
The law bars social media companies from using children’s personal information, and is set to go into effect July 1, 2024.
NetChoice lobbied furiously against that bill and another, which would have given prosecutors the power to sue social media companies for addicting children to their platforms. While they succeeded in getting that bill killed, AB 2273 passed and was signed into law by Newsom.
In a statement, NetChoice counsel Chris Marchese said that laws like California’s violate the First Amendment, and would chill free speech if allowed to take effect.
“Though marketed as a way to protect minors, AB 2273 forces online services to collect sensitive, personal data of website visitors of all ages every time they visit a website. This type of government-mandated data collection puts everyone — but especially minors — at significant risk,” Marchese said.
Newsom fired back with a statement Tuesday, saying that he was proud to sign AB 2273 into law.
“No other state is doing more than California to protect kids – shielding them from harmful data mining, violent content, and automatic GPS tracking that allows adults to track down kids,” the governor said.
AB 2273 may be facing a legal challenge, but state lawmakers aren’t done taking on the social media industry yet.
Earlier this month, Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, introduced a bill, SB 287, that would sanction Facebook, TikTok and other social media platforms that use their algorithms to drive children toward suicide, gun violence, fentanyl, eating disorders or social media addiction.
BARBARA LEE ANNOUNCES SENATE RUN
Rep. Katie Porter, Rep. Adam Schiff, and now Rep. Barbara Lee. The field of Democratic challengers for the U.S. Senate seat, which will be vacated by Sen. Dianne Feinstein next year, continues to grow, with Lee releasing a three-minute video announcing her candidacy Tuesday.
“No one is rolling out the welcome mat, especially for someone like me,” shes says to open the video.
“...They didn’t want to hear my voice or anyone who wasn’t like them. But by the grace of God, I didn’t let that stop me,” she later adds.
Lee used the campaign video to tout her record of legislative achievements, from fighting for domestic violence victims to advocating on behalf of the LGBTQ community. She also pointed out that she stood against Republicans and fellow Democrats in opposing the granting of “completely unlimited war powers” to then-President George W. Bush in the aftermath of Sept. 11, “in the face of countless death threats.”
Lee called for protecting the middle class, taking on poverty and homelessness, tackling the climate crisis and stopping people from trying to “dismantle our democracy,” the latter being a reference to former Republican President Donald Trump and the participants in the Jan. 6 insurrection in D.C.
Lee closed by pointing out that there are presently no Black women in the Senate.
“We won’t let that stop us either,” Lee said.
You can watch the video here.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“You’re gonna miss California’s $3.6 trillion economy.”
- John Myers, former Los Angeles Times journalist turned CalPERS spokesman, responding to Republican Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s call for a “national divorce” between red states and blue states, via Twitter.
Best of The Bee:
California Assemblywoman Mia Bonta, D-Oakland, will recuse herself from subcommittee matters related to her husband’s Department of Justice budget after drawing questions about potential conflict of interest issues, via Lindsey Holden.
The Legislature’s deadline for introducing bills was Friday, meaning senators and assemblymembers now turn to the real business of the session — pushing their measures through the Capitol and hammering out a state budget, via Lindsey Holden.
Rep. Kevin Kiley is leading the fight to persuade President Joe Biden not to name California’s Julie Su as the next U.S. Secretary of Labor, and warns Gov. Gavin Newsom is quietly pushing her candidacy so he can gain more power in Washington, via David Lightman.
California ranked No. 2 behind Vermont in a ranking of the most EV-friendly states, according to a new study of the electric-vehicle charging infrastructure in the United States, via David Caraccio.
As fentanyl overdoses in California climb, here’s what Biden said he would do to stop them, via Gillian Brassil.